One of the greatest middle distance runners in history has retired. Hicham El Guerrouj of Morrocco, world record holder in the 1500 meters, the mile, and the 2000 meters has announced that he is retiring from serious track competition at the ripe old age of 31. He has said that he will continue to run for fun, and plans to even run some marathons for pleasure(!) in the future. While I'm not sure that he was the greatest ever (Paavo Nurmi, Said Aouita, Sebastian Coe, and Nouredine Morcelli, not to mention Jim Ryun and Kip Keino all vie for that title) El G was certainly one of the greatest ever. His double gold medal performance at the 2004 Olympics was a historic performance, and everthing I ever saw or read about him painted him as a gracious competitor. I remember when he won the Prefontaine Mile a few years ago and Alan Webb placed behind him in an American High School record, El G pulled the young American with him on a victory lap. Truly a class act. El G will be missed as a racer, but I think we will still see him as a mentor and spokesman.
Congratulations El G, you always gave your best.
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